Is AluBottle prep better?

[TrevC]

So I took a Kava hiatus (Basically, a doctor scared me into stopping.) and have come back, because I had finally gotten to the point where it WORKS for me, and is one of the most anxiolytic natural substances I've encountered.

I've been through a handful of Aluballs, and when I went to prepare some Kava, the ones I had were in need of replacement. (Tiny nicks here and there were allowing bigger root material through.) While waiting on those to arrive, I went back to traditional knead-and-strain. Worked fine. In fact, the process itself is a relaxing one. I always spent at least 15 if not 20 minutes working on a batch. And I'd go until it didn't feel like an oily clay, but had more of a coarse look, which I confirmed when I emptied the remnants into a Ziploc bag for later use (Thanks, Krunkie McKrunkface!)

New Aluballs came in today and I went with what (for me) is a relatively tame mix of 10 grams Kava Supreme, 10 grams Melo Melo (those went into two Aluballs). I added a splash of almond milk (Made the mistake of using whole milk. Once.) and shook the Alubottle for a good 5 minutes, not necessarily constantly, but I definitely do more than the 30 seconds recommended.

I'm a little shocked by how I felt after that. Very heady, but certainly welcome. Haven't felt like that during any of the traditional prep, and I call myself doing the traditional prep the right way. I know other factors are at play. (Like for example, I was super hungry when I started my first shell.)

Has anyone noticed Alubottle prep to actually be better at extracting the active ingredients?

 

[_byron]

I notice a difference in aluball vs traditional. I believe the aluball does not fully extract the heavy components of kava. So aluball has less total kavalactones than traditional but the ratio to heady vs heavy is more heady in the aluball. Your mileage may vary

 

[Zaphod]

I notice a difference in aluball vs traditional. I believe the aluball does not fully extract the heavy components of kava. So aluball has less total kavalactones than traditional but the ratio to heady vs heavy is more heady in the aluball. Your mileage may vary

I find the same thing. Even more so if I use warm to hot water during traditional prep. The aluball typically provides a headier response with the same kava.

 

[_byron]

I find the same thing. Even more so if I use warm to hot water during traditional prep. The aluball typically provides a headier response with the same kava.

I also find I can consume way more kava before any nausea with the aluball, so it transformed into my preferred prep. Although there is times that call for traditional prep.

 

[Crunked]

So that newcomers to the site are not confused, it might be better to make a clear distinction between the aluball and the alubottle. The aluball is highly regarded, effective and AFAIK there is no close substitute. IMHO the Alubottle is an overpriced bottle that leaks like a colander. I would not recommend it to anyone. Any shaker bottle is better and cheaper.

 

[Zaphod]

So that newcomers to the site are not confused, it might be better to make a clear distinction between the aluball and the alubottle. The aluball is highly regarded, effective and AFAIK there is no close substitute. IMHO the Alubottle is an overpriced bottle that leaks like a colander. I would not recommend it to anyone. Any shaker bottle is better and cheaper.

Agreed. I find protein shake bottles to be much less likely to leak and better suited to making multi-ball grog. The genius in the alu "system" is the ball.
To be clear I still use both the aluball and traditional prep - all depends on mood, amount of time i have, and use.

 

[TrevC]

VERY interesting about the Alubottle! I have plenty of protein bottles laying around, and honestly never thought to use a different container. (The only time I considered differently would be if I were to use, say, 4 Aluballs in a jar, for a large group batch.)

I wonder if the curvature of the inside of the Alubottle is more gentle on the Aluballs, though. ie. They're hitting a curved surface instead of a flat bottom. I seem to go through so many of these (not too cheap) Aluballs as it is. But I'm going to try a regular shaker bottle for today's batch.

You guys are a helpful bunch.

 

[Krunkie McKrunkface]

I love the AluBall and trad prep. And just to add, you can also shake up a decent strong grog in a pinch using a small cloth sack and a mason jar. Many paths, much krunk, happy mud.

 

[Mo'iety]

I find the same thing. Even more so if I use warm to hot water during traditional prep. The aluball typically provides a headier response with the same kava.

Hmm interesting. Sorry for resurrecting an old thread. I've been doing exclusively traditional prep but this is making me consider the aluball. Both for convenience and because I drink primarily for heady effects. I wouldn't mind "wasting" the heavy KLs as much as long as most of the headiness gets extracted.

 

[Zaphod]

Hmm interesting. Sorry for resurrecting an old thread. I've been doing exclusively traditional prep but this is making me consider the aluball. Both for convenience and because I drink primarily for heady effects. I wouldn't mind "wasting" the heavy KLs as much as long as most of the headiness gets extracted.

No problem. Don't get me wrong I like my aluball and it provides a great and convenient grog, but it does filter smaller than my bag. The grog is also typically less "oily" than traditional prep. Which in general also makes it taste better. I tend to use my aluball when I am short on time, need the convenience (like traveling), lazy, or if dermo starts to get bad I find the finer mesh size helps with the ingestion of too much sediment. Just make sure to get at least 2 balls. I usually double aluball when I prep.